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Yo_Mama

(8,303 posts)
1. Get the facts straight - taxpayers aren't paying 750 billion
Sun Jan 15, 2012, 11:09 AM
Jan 2012

As earlier mortgages are paid off, the Fed ends up with a lot of loose cash on its balance sheets. It has been and will be reinvesting some in more mortgage bonds.

So far the Fed has made a lot of money off its ops and is in fact paying the taxpayers dividends. They just paid the Treasury 77 billion:
http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/fed/story/2012-01-10/federal-reserve-pays-treasury-77B-in-2011/52482722/1

Let's not post nonsense here.

All central banks have a portfolio of securities, and usually that is concentrated in sovereign bonds. They have to have them; selling and buying is one way they control various aspects of the monetary system. Recently the Fed greatly expanded its purchases.

Central banks are BANKS. The essential business of banks is investing money on deposit for higher interest rates than the deposits command. Right now the Fed has a ton of money on deposit at very low rates, because regular banks don't have much else to do with their excess. So the Fed can make a lot of money buying mortgage bonds that pay low, because what matters to the Fed is the difference between what they have to pay for money versus what they can get by investing that money.

One of the Fed's strategies has been to keep interest rates very low to make homes more affordable, and to make the cost of funding our public debt more affordable. It is working - mortgage rates are remarkably low.

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Get the facts straight - taxpayers aren't paying 750 billion Yo_Mama Jan 2012 #1
Investing 3 trillion and getting 77 billion is not a lot of money. It's less than 3%. mbperrin Jan 2012 #2
That was just for one year, and all expenses are paid out of earnings. Yo_Mama Jan 2012 #4
The 3 trillion figure came from YOUR original link. mbperrin Jan 2012 #7
But that money doesn't come from taxpayers Yo_Mama Jan 2012 #10
I wanted to make another comment on the global problem Yo_Mama Jan 2012 #12
Several things Sam1 Jan 2012 #16
You mean spending is not limited when you have a sovereign currency, not debt, right? Yo_Mama Jan 2012 #18
I ment what I said. Sam1 Jan 2012 #20
Are you aware that the banks are still "borrowing" from the Fed - truedelphi Jan 2012 #8
That's not borrowing from the Fed Yo_Mama Jan 2012 #11
Call it what you want but William Black and Allan Grayson wouldn't truedelphi Jan 2012 #13
First of all, it looks to me, like Sam1 Jan 2012 #17
As many others here probably know, truedelphi Jan 2012 #21
Cherry pick much? westerebus Jan 2012 #19
How do cramdowns and mass bank liquidations fix anything? dkf Jan 2012 #3
You can't make mortgage loans when rates are this low. Yo_Mama Jan 2012 #5
You run into non-warrantable condos? dkf Jan 2012 #6
Condos can be a real mess Yo_Mama Jan 2012 #9
Are condos a small enough % that the real estate market can be fixed without it? dkf Jan 2012 #14
It depends on your area Yo_Mama Jan 2012 #15
Latest Discussions»Issue Forums»Economy»Why not cramdowns instead...»Reply #1